"Welcome to Scamdinavia." One Manchester United supporter's banner is not referring to the exorbitant price of a pint of Carlsberg in Herming or Danish pastries, but the £71 Midtjylland are charging them to watch their Europa League round-of-32 second leg on Thursday night.

Southampton fans were charged £22 when they faced the Danish champions in a Europa League qualifier. It is not just English clubs who function on the basis that richer clubs must have richer fans - even Arsenal don't charge awaydayers £71 to stand in their soulless shopping mall complex.

As United We Stand and M.E.N. Sport contributor Andy Mitten said: "The combined cost of all three tickets for Manchester United's Champions League away games was only £75."

Irrespective of clubs' prestige and history, Reds are being ripped off. For a Europa League match.

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Regarding the eye-watering cost of a ticket, Midtjylland's commercial director, Jacob Jorgensen, said in December: "I can understand that it's expensive for a United fan to see FC Midtjylland and that they are angry themselves. But that's how it is.

"We are in competition with Manchester United to move forward, and their huge turnover and many TV money is so much greater than ours. I think we put up a very fair price, we could easily get sold out for the match, we took 1500-2000 kroner per ticket."

Despite the off-putting price, United received over 2,000 applications for the 800 tickets they received for this week's tie. Whatever the cost, a United away day is still too tantalising to pass on. United's travelling contingent has been the best in the country for some time and the din they made at Derby and Chelsea in recent weeks had heads turning in the home end and the press box.

Away days reward patience, too. Those season ticket holders who made the trip to PSV in September needed credits dating back to David Moyes' reign to apply.

That is just one quandary supporters have when faced with extortionate ticket fees. United's Inter City Jibbers firm's motto used to pay 'To pay is to fail' and it could be applied to the Midtjylland malarky.

United will only have 800 fans at Midtjylland's ground

Should broadcasters home in on the supporter's 'Scamdinavia' banner then those watching on television may wonder: 'Why did you pay to go?'

Liverpool supporters might have crossed the picket line to attend their home game against Sunderland earlier this month, however they did not have to pay the infamous £77 owners Fenway Sports Group planned to charge in the new main stand. Come the 77th minute, thousands of supporters streamed towards the exits and the walkout worked.

Leading 2-0 at the time, the score at full-time was 2-2. Empty seats cannot legislate for Simon Mignolet's flappy bird act but, with red seats pockmarked around the ground, Anfield had the air of an exhibition match and Liverpool dropped points. Then FSG dropped plans to introduce the £77 tickets.

Liverpool fans' protest was effective

United supporters are not prepared to do what Liverpool fans did. The 2010 green and gold campaign against the loathed Glazer family was vibrant, militant and so well choreographed it spawned the Red Knights, a mixture of city bankers and lawyers with aspirations of taking over the club.

The Glazers, though, were so relaxed they could attend home games with supporters clad in a green and gold scarf sat behind them. The scarf had become an in-vogue fashion accessory and some even wore them over replica shirts. To protest against the Glazers in front of a televised audience, supporters had to continue paying them. It is, perhaps, no coincidence ticket prices have been frozen in the aftermath of the green and gold campaign to appease supporters.

United supporters adopted the green and gold colours against the Glazers in 2010

Numerous Reds have not stepped foot inside Old Trafford since the Tampa-based family's 2005 takeover and look to FC United for their earthy escapism. Missing the match for the majority, though, is a wrench. However sanitised the matchgoing experience has become, those who abstain from it start clucking and need their fix again, so return.

It is a dilemma many empathise with and it became such a topical discussion in Manchester a scene in Ken Loach's Looking for Eric was dedicated to the Manchester/FC United divide.

There are numerous nuances but, ultimately, the most effective stand United supporters could have made against Midtjylland was to send the 800 tickets back.